Stepping of the Mast!

Stepping of the Mast!

Watch the installation of the lower Main and Foremasts on the Matthew Turner.

Memorial coins and talismans will be placed under the masts, an ancient tradition to ensure good luck and safe passage. Viewing will be in the afternoon, roughly from 3:00-5:00pm. The best views will be from the picnic tables and lawn in front of the Bay Model.

Matthew Turner logo merchandise and information about Call of the Sea’s educational programs will be available, as well as a chance to win a raffle to sail on Matthew Turner in 2018!

There will be a party in the Tall Ship tent, located at 2300 Marinship Way, after the masts have been set.

Come join us for hot dogs, beer and some good tall, ship building tales.

If you have questions, call (415) 886-4973 Ext 1 or email sylvia@callofthesea.org

More information:

Matthew Turner’s main mast and foremast are built, as was the tradition, in two sections each. The masts are constructed, epoxy laminated Douglas fir planks that have been hand- shaped into massive, tapered cylinders. The yards and booms are also constructed in this manner.

The lower main and foremasts, weighing about 4,500 and 4,000 lbs. respectively, will be stepped into custom bronze fittings firmly secured to Matthew Turner’s keel. The lower main mast will stand about 70 feet above the water.

The upper main and foremasts, weighing about 2,000 and 1,500 lbs. respectively, will be stepped secured to the lower masts in October, using custom fabricated steel fittings and standing wire rigging, and will extend 30-50 feet above the lower masts for a total height of 100 feet.

Both mast steps will contain several historic and contemporary US silver dollars, gold coins and talisman that will be permanently held in place by the mast base. Sailors and shipwrights have been putting coins under masts of ships for several thousand years… They’ve been found in the mast steps of ancient Roman shipwrecks. The hope, still, is that the offering will bring good luck and safe passage.